The manager of Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown County Council has said he believes that a draft plan prepared by consultants would not be an adequate framework to guide future development in the Sandyford industrial estate.
London design consultants Urban Initiative were commissioned by the local authority to design the draft Sandyford urban framework plan for the industrial estate. They recommended a high-rise, structured approach to the area, which they said had suffered from piecemeal development.
The report made specific recommendations on the form of the new development, including land uses and density, the massing and height of buildings, the location of landmarks, streetscapes and public spaces.
At a recent meeting, the Sandyford Action Group called on Dún Laoghaire-Rathdown to disregard the draft urban framework plan and instead urged the council to prepare a local area plan for the industrial estate.
The group said it was concerned that there were major deficiencies in the plan in the areas of social infrastructure, road network and public transport, and that the draft plan incorrectly assumed that the area could sustain unprecedented levels of height and density.
However, county manager Owen Keegan stated in a letter circulated to local councillors that the urban framework plan "does not deal adequately with the provision of the necessary infrastructure to support future development in the area".
"The report also proposes some additional transportation investment measures not provided for in the land use and transportation study, which may not be feasible. Finally, the quantum of development envisaged in the report is well above the quantum of development being contemplated by the council," he wrote.
"I do not consider that it would be appropriate to circulate the Urban Initiatives report at this stage as it does not represent the position of the council in relation to the future development of the Sandyford area.
"I want to emphasise that the draft report does not provide a basis for development control policy in the area and it is not being relied on by the council for this purpose."
Mr Keegan said the council was still assessing the report while having regard to constraints in the areas of transport, water and drainage services, social infrastructure, recreation facilities, and the likely costs.
He added that it was "unlikely" that major new developments proposed for the area would be granted planning permission in the short term because of the uncertainty about infrastructure capacity and the completion of the urban framework plan.
Local Progressive Democrats activist Barry Saul has asked the European Parliament's petitions committee to investigate the council's compliance with European directives in relation to environmental impact assessments and pollution for the Sandyford industrial estate.